Argos sign deal to stay at Rogers Centre through 2017

Argonauts cornerback Pacino Horne celebrates an interception returned for a touchdown against the Stampeders during the Grey Cup game at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ont., Nov. 25, 2012. (MICHAEL PEAKE/Toronto Sun)

CALGARY — The worst-kept secret in Toronto sports was confirmed on Friday when the Blue Jays and Argonauts announced an arrangement that will see the CFL club play at Rogers Centre for the foreseeable future.

The rub is that there is no future for football at Rogers Centre, save for any playoff game and the occasional Grey Cup, because the Argos need to find a home more conducive to football and more fan-friendly when it comes to dates.

Another outstanding issue remains David Braley’s ownership of the franchise, one of two under his guidance in the CFL — a league that will next year welcome back Ottawa as its ninth team.

While Friday’s long-awaited announcement at least assures the Argos of not being homeless, it does nothing to address the bigger-picture issues that continue to surround the CFL’s biggest market.

If you’re an Argos fan, take solace in knowing the deal provides the team with an option to escape the terms of the arrangement before its expiration on Dec. 31, 2017.

In other words, if, wink, wink, Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, decides to buy the Argos and move it into an expanded BMO Field, the team can get out of its lease at Rogers Centre.

Or, if some venue under the right structure, financially and location-friendly, is somehow arranged, the Argos can tell Rogers they’re leaving a stadium that is simply too big.

It’s no secret the Jays want a grass-only facility to appease the seam-heads.

It’s no secret the Argos need to control dates when so little has been presented to the team at Rogers Centre.

With so much pre-season hype surrounding the Jays, the Argos were compromised even more than they’ve been in the past, having to settle for a schedule that has drawn flies, by far the worst scenario unfolding when a visit by Montreal on the day following Labour Day drew next-to-nothing, if one were to eliminate the discounted tickets given to U of T students as part of their orientation week.

Oddly enough, the Argos will go roughly one month between home dates, the team’s last on Sept. 3, the next on Oct. 4, an unspeakable stretch that underlines the plight of the Argos.

No wonder every home game is viewed as an away game by players and football people within the organization.

En route to winning last year’s Grey Cup, the Argo had a losing record at home. Entering Saturday night’s game against the hometown Stamps, the Double Blue have won two straight on the road.

“We are pleased to have concluded what has been a very amicable negotiation with the Argonauts resulting in an agreement that is fair for both the Blue Jays and the Argonauts,’’ Blue Jays and Rogers Centre president and CEO Paul Beeston said in a prepared statement.

“The length of the deal allows the Argonauts a reasonable period of time to pursue other stadium options while allowing us sufficient time to plan the logistics of various stadium improvements including the installation of a grass playing surface for baseball at Rogers Centre.”

Said Argonauts chief executive Chris Rudge in a prepared statement: “Rogers Centre representatives have been a pleasure to negotiate with through this licence agreement extension. The Argos look forward to the process of developing and implementing a plan for a new home for the team while we continue to be a cornerstone tenant of the stadium that has been our home since its opening in 1989.”

What was announced on Friday means nothing, or next to nothing. What must get done with the Scullers is to find an owner and a permanent home that allows for fans to be properly and fairly treated.

All the rhetoric aside, Rogers Centre has treated the Argos like second-class citizens, but at least the Blue Jays haven’t thrown the team out on the curb.

BRALEY EYES ARGOS SALE IN THREE YEARS

Sen. David Braley let the cat out of the bag during a political fundraiser this week, revealing what everyone has known for years.

With Braley getting older and realizing a transition must be put into place for his two CFL franchises, the senator told an audience that he hopes to sell both the Toronto Argonauts and British Columbia Lions by the time he turns 75. He’s now 72 years old, leaving Braley three years to find suitable owners in Vancouver, where the Lions are profitable and very viable, and in Toronto, where the Argos are gradually making inroads from a business perspective.

It’s interesting why Braley would go public when it’s in his best interest to keep it behind closed doors. Clearly, the future of the Double Blue is the No. 1 priority of the CFL and why the league hasn’t put the lid on Braley speaks to the cache Braley carries.

In terms of passion, Braley’s heart is in B.C, where he claims at least seven groups have approached him.

He cares little about the Argos and claims three people have inquired.

In addition, Braley says he’s looking into building a new stadium for the Argos, insisting four municipalities, without identifying any, with land willing to oblige the homeless club. Within a year, claimed Braley, a site and financing, with some public money by the way, should be firmed up.

The CFL has awarded Braley two Grey Cups in the past three years, three in four if one were to include next year’s championship to be played in Vancouver. Braley once owned the Ticats. He purchased the Lions in 1997 and took over as Argos owner in 2010.

Argos sign deal to stay at Rogers Centre through 2017

The worst-kept secret in Toronto sports was confirmed on Friday when the Jays and Argos announced an arrangement that will see the CFL club play at Rogers Centre for the foreseeable future.

The rub is that there is no future for football at Rogers Centre, save for any playoff game and the occasional Grey Cup, because the Argos need to find a home more conducive to football and more fan-friendly when it comes to dates.

Another outstanding issue remains David Braley's ownership of the team, one of two under his guidance, in a league that will next year welcome back Ottawa as its ninth franchise.